Marlin Klein emerges from ‘jungle' to take Michigan's top TE spot in 2025

USA Today

2 days ago

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Marlin Klein has some awfully big shoes to fill. His predecessor at tight end at Michigan football was Colston Loveland, who ended up being selected at No. 10 overall by the Chicago Bears in the 2025 NFL draft. But now Klein is expected to take the mantle, and that is a new challenge all on its own.
He got plenty of time on task in 2024, with Loveland battling an injury throughout much of the year. And with the German-born player having only started playing football just a few years before coming to Ann Arbor, that meant that he was green, but also a blank canvas.
With that, he never worried about whether or not he could play at a high level, but tight ends coach Steve Casula really pushed Klein to be the best he could be, particularly this offseason, and while that was challenging, it was fruitful, Klein says.
"Yeah, I always thought that I belonged," Klein said. "I knew it was going to take me a little longer than some others. Just started playing the game of football a couple of years ago. So I knew it was going to take me a little longer. And, especially coming to Michigan, really coming in here with the challenge of, you're going to tight end U. I've never blocked a guy when I came here. So I knew there was going to be a lot of challenges for me, but that's what I put myself in, because I wanted to be the best.
"So, to be the best, you've got to beat the best. And I think the switch really flipped last spring ball. Coach Casula came, he's been tremendous. And he's such a vital part to this university, this program now. But yeah, we went to the jungle. The way he describes the jungle is really like, we locked in, and he was the most critical person on me. But it wasn't a personal thing. I knew he wanted the best for me. So yeah, each and every single day, the meetings weren't the most fun for me because I had to get better. I had to get better now. And he pushed me each and every single day. And it was the biggest blessing that ever happened to me. And that took, really, my game to the next level."
The 'jungle' was more than just training camp or spring ball or focus in practice, as Klein tells it. It was a grueling cycle where he was under intense scrutiny -- not because he was failing, but in order to rise to the level he would be tasked with this fall, he had to be broken down and then built back up again.
"When he talked about going to the jungle, it was really, it was him and me -- and it was really run-game specific because that's what I was going to do before last season," Klein said. "So it was really the most critical time of my life, and it was never good enough, but that was really just because he tried to push me to my best, and he helped me to the standard. Which is the Michigan standard, and the Michigan standard is a championship standard. So that equals the best.
"So, it wasn't a fun time during spring, but it wasn't a personal thing. It was him trying to make me and turn me into the best player that I could be. But yeah, it was, looking back, it was fun. While it wasn't, but it was the best for me and my game."
As noted, Klein got some time on task last season when Loveland was either limited or out with injury. He already had a mentality of 'stay ready so you don't have to get ready,' especially knowing the fleeting nature of the game. But with his experience a year ago plus the 'jungle,' he feels ready to take up that No. 1 tight end role he's expected to thrive in this season.
"I think it prepared me," Klein said. "I know the game of football, like -- everything can be stripped away from you the same day. I might not play tomorrow. I might not go out there and be able to play tomorrow. So I knew that I was going to be prepared. And that really comes from practice, practicing, and really just attacking each and every single day with the same mindset and getting after it and trying to get better. So I never really thought about, oh, I have to be ready now, I have to be ready now. Like I knew I was going to be ready when the time came. So that's what happened."